Captive
by doubbletakke
Summary: The countries of Renova and Vastar are at war. The King of Vastar hires Blaine from a band of assassins to kidnap Prince Kurt of Renova. They give the King of Renova an ultimatum-forfeit the war or his son dies. AU!Klaine
1. Chapter 1

It's been seven years since the war between the two regions of Vastar and Renova began. Several versions of the tale of how the war came about have spread throughout the lands, but the reality was simply that the King of Renova was a man with a hunger for land and power. His troops were the first to cross the border into Vastar and take over a nearby, unsuspecting village. The victory sent him on a power trip, and he continued the conquest despite the lack of support from his advisors.

Vastar retaliated swiftly, and so the battle began. Within the first three years, Renova managed to gain more land, and Vastar suffered greatly. Both kingdoms had a tremendous amount of casualties.

The people of Renova rallied to beg the king to give up the war. They were growing sick of seeing their friends and family members killed over land they didn't even need. Renova had been large enough without the added territory from Vastar.

Everyone wanted the suffering to end, and the royal family of Renova gained much criticism from their people. It seemed as though the King couldn't care less, and continued sending troops into battle.

The King of Vastar knew he couldn't risk losing any more of his weakening army, and so he called in his last resort-the Gladius Occultus. The leader, Devarion Anderson, and the king were long-time allies.

The Gladius Occultus were assassins: masters of stealth, weaponry, and, well, murder. They were quite legendary and held noble status in Vastar. Their aim was to protect the people of the land from its enemies, and thus many of their actions were regarded as good deeds.

Devarion and the King met, and spent two days formulating a plan they had no doubt would be successful. The night of the second day, the plan was put into action.

* * *

><p>The light of the full moon poured through the musty window of the cabin, dimly illuminating the man sitting in the chair near the windowsill. He was slouched, arms crossed, with his chin tucked down against his chest lazily. Golden-hazel eyes struggled to stay open and alert, frequently glancing up at the figure lying on the bed in the corner of the room. There was little sleep to be had tonight for Blaine Anderson.<p>

Despite being one of the most highly skilled assassins in the land, anxiety still managed to take root in Blaine's mind now and then, especially on missions as serious as this one.

Kidnapping the prince had been relatively simple. Scaling the castle wall in the dead of night required much stealth and a little exertion, but was not too difficult a task for Blaine. Once he was in the prince's bedroom, he knocked the young man out easily with a rag soaked in sedative so not a sound was made. They were both out of the castle in no time, and he brought the prince here to a seemingly abandoned little cabin in the woods he acquired not very far from the city.

Keeping Prince Kurt hostage was going to be the more difficult part, and here is where Blaine's anxiety kicked in. The king would most likely send a search party as soon as someone notices his son's bedroom is empty, and so Blaine knew they had to leave this cabin first thing in the morning. He couldn't allow himself to get caught. Not only would that most likely result in his beheading, but it would also result in his father's disappointment, something Blaine has always avoided like the plague.

Blaine's father, Devarion Anderson, is the leader of the Gladius Occultus, a legendary band of assassins whose headquarters resides in Vastar. Under his father's training, which began at a very young age, Blaine quickly grew skilled in the ways of an assassin and rose through the ranks. Now, at the astonishingly young age of twenty, he was his father's right hand man, next in line for the position of leader.

Getting caught was not an option. It would cause much damage to not only Blaine's position, but the entire brotherhood.

Blaine realized if he sat in the chair any longer, he was sure to fall asleep. He sighed and stood, glancing out the window. The sun would be rising soon either way, it would be best if he began to prepare for travel.

A rustling sound emitted from the corner of the room, and the young assassin's eyes turned to the bed. The prince was shifting slightly in his sleep, but Blaine knew he wouldn't wake for at least another hour or two due to the sedative. His eyes traveled to the shackle around the prince's ankle that kept him attached to the bed. Even if the prince did awaken now, he wasn't going anywhere.

* * *

><p>To say that life for Prince Kurt has been stressful lately would be quite the understatement. He was destined to one day run a kingdom that was in a pitiful war, one that has been going on for years and doesn't seem to be ending anytime soon. His father, the King of Renova, was determined to see the war through to the end with his army coming out the victor. It was quite tiresome, really. The entire royal family was under criticism now, including young Kurt Hummel.<p>

_What were his plans to remedy the situation once he took the throne? Or does he plan on following in his father's footsteps and letting the battles rage on? Is he even prepared for the responsibilities that come with running a kingdom?_ The constant questioning from royals, nobles, and townspeople put such pressure on Kurt that he rarely left the castle.

Little did he know that his worries were nothing compared to what was about to occur.

Lying on a strange bed that was quite uncomfortable, Kurt was in such a deep state of unconsciousness that not a dream stirred in his mind. No dreams, no thoughts, but there was an image. A man standing over him in his bedroom at the castle. It was dark, so Kurt had trouble discerning the man's features. The only thing that stood out was his eyes. Bright hazel eyes.

Suddenly, the image came alive, and the mysterious stranger started to move his hand towards him. Feeling his senses come alive with the image, a dream began to form, signaling that the sedative must be wearing off, not that the prince was aware of this.

He felt his heart beat quicken and terror pulse through his veins as the man pressed a rag over his mouth. His slender hands clasped the man's wrist to try and pull him off, not wanting to have to fall into empty unconsciousness again. Feeling a fog roll over his senses, Kurt panicked, and it was enough to jolt him awake.

Blaine was in the midst of concealing weapons on his person when the prince sat up suddenly on the bed. He paused from tinkering with the blade mechanism on his arm and looked over, watching Kurt silently. There was no need to try and talk to him yet, the prince was clearly startled enough already.

Kurt looked down at himself, half expecting to see a knife protruding from his stomach and blood everywhere. Other than his night garments being a little dirty, he appeared unscathed. His ocean-colored eyes rose to scan at the surroundings, his lips parted and panting from the panic of the dream, which quickly turned into real panic as he became aware that he was no longer in his bedroom.

Blaine lowered his arms, a very small movement, but it still caught Kurt's attention. Every muscle in his body froze as his eyes rested on the other male figure in the room.

The morning light shining through the small windows of the cabin filled the room enough to allow him to clearly examine the man's features. His hair was short, dark, and curly; tanned skin; a face he would have found very attractive if this were a different situation. This all went mostly unnoticed though due to the fact that what Kurt was really focused on was his eyes.

The same bright hazel that belonged to the man in his dream.

In an attempt to move his legs to get off the bed and take off in a dash, something cold and metal around his right ankle stopped him. Kurt looked down and held in a cry at the sight of the rusted shackle around his ankle.

The image that had stuck in his head as he slept had not just been a figment of his imagination. Kurt realized quickly he had been kidnapped, and it was no use to really wonder why. He was a prince after all. That was probably reason enough. He lifted his eyes to look at the man again.

"Who are you?" he demanded, his voice stern, but with fear interlaced in it as well," and where am I?"

"Good morning to you, too," Blaine replied simply, ignoring his questions for the time being as he sat back on the chair in the corner to put on his boots. The prince was not screaming for help or struggling unnecessarily against the chain, which was very good for Blaine.

His voice was too calm and casual as he bid him good morning, which angered Kurt. Here he was, kidnapped and taken to God-knows-where by _his_ doing, and all he could say was 'good morning'? There was nothing good about it! His eyes narrowed at Blaine and he made an "ahem" sound.

Blaine looked up at Kurt and stared at him a moment. The rumors he had heard about Prince Kurt were true, that he is one of the most gorgeous men in Renova. He had the face of an angel. Though the angry glare he was shooting Blaine right now was kind of ruining the angelic grace.

"My name is Blaine," he finally answered, standing up and walking over to the small dresser in the room. He rummaged through the drawers, glancing back and forth between Kurt and the clothing he was pulling out, mentally sizing him up.

"Well, Blaine, normally I would introduce myself as well, but that would be rather pointless, now wouldn't it be?" Kurt retorted bitterly, which caused Blaine to chuckle.

"Quite. I know all about you…Prince Kurt Hummel, one and only heir to the throne of Renova," Blaine responded, stating the prince's name in a slightly melodramatic tone.

Kurt scowled, but didn't say anything in response. He took a moment to examine his captor. The uniform he was wearing gave Kurt the impression he was some sort of soldier, though he did not recognize the symbol on the chest of Blaine's tunic. He had a sword and a couple small blades strapped to his waist, and the sight of them made Kurt shudder. Oh God, was Blaine planning on _killing_ Kurt?

Blaine looked over, catching the frightened look in Kurt's eyes and smirked. "I'm not going to harm you if that's what you're wondering. At least, I don't want to," he said, and he was telling the truth. He was under strict orders not to let harm come to the prince, but unfortunately, if the king does not give in to the ransom demands, then…

"And to answer your question from earlier, we're in a cabin not too far from your city," Blaine continued, and tossed the clothes he gathered onto the bed by Kurt's feet.

Kurt stared with disgust at the worn out, peasant wear. "What are those for?"

"Those are for you, unless you want to walk through the woods in what you're wearing. Those shoes are for you, too," Blaine nodded at the shoes sitting on the floor by the bed. He laughed at the way Kurt looked at them. "I apologize that this cabin isn't equipped with clothes made of silk and shoes adorned with rubies, your highness," he said jokingly," Considering you're circumstances at the moment, I don't think you're in a position to complain."

"Oh, I have plenty to complain about _considering my circumstances_," Kurt hissed. "Speaking of which, what is it that you want from me? Money? Because my father has plenty, and I'm sure if you return me to my castle he'll give you whatever you need."

"That's what I'm relying on, prince, but unfortunately for you, money is not what we are asking for, and so you're going to have to stick with me for a while."


	2. Chapter 2

"You know, you're father owes my country a lot of land, and a lot of lives…but those can never be repaid," Blaine said, his tone dark. Sure, it may not directly be the prince's fault, but Blaine couldn't help but harbor a bit of animosity towards him for what his father has cost Vastar.

He walked over to the window and scanned the surroundings outside. They needed to get moving. There was no telling how quickly Prince Kurt's search party would get here.

Kurt didn't reply. He was analyzing this new information in his head. Blaine must be from Vastar, and that gave Kurt a big clue as to why he was kidnapped. This must be about revenge, but if so, why did he say he wasn't going to harm Kurt?

Fear gripped him as he convinced himself Blaine must have been lying. After all, it would be so perfect, killing him to get back at his father for being so heartless to the people of Vastar. His death would surely devastate the people of Renova. Their future ruler would be lost.

"We're leaving now, so you should hurry and get dressed," Blaine demanded, walking back to the bed and pulling a key out of his pocket to unlock the shackle around Kurt's ankle.

"Leaving? Why? Where to?" Kurt questioned, his eyes widening in fear.

No no no, they needed to stay here. If what Blaine said was true and they weren't that far from the castle, his father most certainly has discovered he's missing by now and is sending his men to find him. If Blaine took him farther from the city, his rescue would be more difficult.

Oh god, what if he never got rescued, and never saw his home again?

No, he couldn't let himself think like that yet. There was still hope.

Blaine removed the shackle from Kurt and looked up at him, eyeing him warily as he considered how much he could tell Kurt. "To Spade," he finally answered, knowing Kurt probably knew of the place. It was a small town, and a loyal ally to Vastar. They didn't have enough forces to help fight in the war, but they gave what supplies they could. "That's where I'll be finding out whether we'll be returning you or not so we could put this all behind us."

"You make that sound like it'll be easy," Kurt muttered. And if they went to Spade and found out he wasn't to be returned? The prince was afraid to ask what would happen then.

"Just get dressed," Blaine said sternly. They were wasting time here, and it wasn't helping his anxiety.

Kurt narrowed his eyes at him. No one ever dared give him orders unless they were higher up than him in status, and the only person higher than him was his father. He reluctantly complied though and took the clothes into his hands. He had to remind himself that Blaine was armed, and there was no telling how willing he was to use his weapons against him.

He stood up and paused. Blaine was still staring at him, and Kurt didn't feel comfortable getting almost naked in front of another man. Especially a man he barely knows…who is holding him hostage….and has weapons.

"Do you mind? Trying to get dressed like you so rudely demanded," Kurt glared.

Blaine raised an eyebrow, slightly caught off guard by the comment. For a split second, he thought Kurt somehow knew he was gay, and thus thought Blaine was trying to check him out or something. Sure, the prince was attractive, but Blaine was no creep who had any interest in molesting his hostage. He was a dignified assassin…as contradictory as that may sound.

That couldn't be why though, so he dispelled that thought quickly. In the absolutely miniscule amount of time that they've been…acquainted…Blaine has shown no signs of it. He figured Kurt probably wanted him to turn around so he can hit him on the head and run away or some other sort of foolish attempt of escape.

"Well, I have to keep an eye on you, your highness. Can't have you running off," Blaine answered blatantly.

Kurt frowned. The way Blaine said 'you highness' irked him, always in such a snarky tone. "Then stand by the door and turn around."

The corner of Blaine's mouth pulled up in amusement. "Is this really that big a deal?"

And then to his shock, Kurt _blushed_. So he did think Blaine was trying to check him out!

Which did make sense though, Blaine was aware that Prince Kurt was gay. That was a well-known fact throughout all of Renova, and thus most people in Vastar knew about it as well. The story goes that Kurt confessed his homosexuality to his father when he was fifteen because he was tired of him and the other residents of the castle bothering him about seeking a princess to marry.

Luckily for the both of them, homosexuality was not something that was frowned upon in these parts. For Kurt though, there were a lot of citizens of Renova who were quite disappointed. Kurt was now twenty years of age, and there were not many gay royals or nobles to choose from. Actually, there were no gay royals. Many people realized the prince may end up marrying a commoner, and what a scandal that would cause. There was also the issue that two men could not have children. Who will be the new heir to the throne after Kurt?

These were among the many trifles the young prince had to deal with on a daily basis. At the moment though, his primary concern was to not be assaulted by his blade-wielding kidnapper.

"The more you argue with me about this, the longer it will take for us to leave," Kurt retorted, angry at himself for blushing and angry at Blaine for making him blush.

Blaine couldn't help but laugh a bit, and Kurt glared at him for it. In a way, he could see how he was being amusing. Any normal person in his current situation would be screaming their heads off for help or trying to fight Blaine off, neither of which he was doing.

Kurt was a prince though, and felt obligated to act like one no matter the situation. He was not going to make himself look like a pathetic weakling in front of his kidnapper. It would be disgracing. No, he had to maintain a regal manner despite the fact that he was thoroughly panicking on the inside.

"Very well then, I'll turn around," Blaine said, an amused grin on his face. He walked over to the door and stood in front of it, arms crossed, back facing Kurt. "I'm only giving you two minutes though."

Kurt repressed an annoyed sigh and began changing, pulling on the long-sleeved, off-white shirt and dark brown trousers. The prince grimaced. The cheap, simple material felt foreign and uncomfortable on his skin, but he had no other choice. He slipped the worn-out shoes on, and then eyed his pajamas he left on the bed.

"Done?" Blaine asked, glancing behind him. He caught Kurt staring at his old clothes as if he were wondering what to do with them. "Bring those with you. Now let's go, we can't have anyone finding you," he commanded, opening the door and waiting for Kurt.

"I think you mean _you_ can't have anyone finding me," Kurt corrected him, and reluctantly gathered his clothes into his arms. He had thought it would be a good idea to leave them there. If any of his father's troops came by searching for him, maybe knowing he had been here would help them. Obviously Blaine had that figured out as well though.

Kurt stepped out of the cabin, the warm sunlight hitting his face and causing him to squint as he looked around. The forest was vast and intimidating, but it didn't hinder his fight-or-flight response from kicking in, which was leaning more towards flight at the moment.

Blaine was not just any average kidnapper though. The weapons and armor he wore told Kurt that much. That as well as the fact that he snuck Kurt out of his heavily guarded castle without alarming a single guard proved that escaping him would be no walk in the park.

Besides, even if Kurt did run, he had absolutely no idea where he was or which direction to go in.

"This way," Blaine motioned for Kurt to follow him and began walking westbound from the cabin.

Kurt stayed still, glancing around nervously. If there was ever a perfect time for him to be saved, now would be it.

Blaine stopped and looked over at him, letting out an annoyed sigh. "Please don't make me threaten you. This really doesn't need to be difficult," he said.

Kurt glowered at Blaine, but followed reluctantly anyway. When it came to being rescued, he was going to have to be patient.

* * *

><p>The two of them were silent after that. Blaine lead the way through the forest of pine trees and shrubbery, only the sounds of their footsteps cracking on leaves and occasional bird calls breaking the silence.<p>

The wheels in the prince's head were turning. It was incredibly clear that if they were meeting someone in Spade, then his kidnapping was not simply the act of this one man, but a part of something bigger. He still didn't know what Blaine wanted him for, but he would probably find out once they reached the town.

However, once they got there, he would be a hostage to not just one man, but two. Or possibly even more? Escape at that point would be highly improbable. The panic of realization was hitting him fast. He needed to try and get away while he was alone with Blaine.

Kurt hoped that, if they were walking towards Spade at the moment, Renova would be in the opposite direction. Or hopefully that's how it works. Kurt was no expert at direction. Essentially, all he had to do was turn around and run, and keep running until he got out of these woods and found someone to help him. Or at least until he lost Blaine.

Could he possibly outrun his captor though? By the looks of it, Blaine is a trained soldier. That easily made probably five times stronger and faster than Kurt.

He had to try though. This was his life at stake. It was now or never, right?

Kurt's heartbeat quickened as he made his decision, and adrenaline began pumping through his veins at the thought of what he was about to do. He tried to calm himself externally as best he could, not wanting Blaine hear the near-hyperventilation in his breathing.

Now or never.

The clothes in his arms fell to the floor silently, and Kurt turned around and dashed off in the opposite direction. His long legs carried him as fast as they were capable through the plants and trees. _Don't trip, don't trip, don't trip_… he chanted to himself in his head, his surroundings a blur as he raced through the forest.

Blaine spun around and stared after Kurt with an expression that was shock at first, but quickly turned smug.

"Not a good idea, your highness," he murmured, his hazel eyes twinkling with amusement.


	3. Chapter 3

Although the prince had quite a head start on him, Blaine was not worried about not being able to catch up. He began to run, his hazel eyes locked on the shrinking figure in the distance. His steps were noticeably quieter than Kurt's, but that was because stealth came very naturally to him. All his movements were quiet, a quality gained from being raised by an assassin.

Blaine gained a lot of ground quickly, and was getting closer to Kurt with each stride. Before he could get close though for Kurt to hear him though, he jumped to the side to hide himself amongst the trees and continued to run silently. Foliage hid Blaine from Kurt's view if he tried to look back, but Blaine could still somewhat make out Kurt's shape through the leaves.

Besides, Kurt was making all sorts of noise, so Blaine didn't even need to see him to know where he was. Leaves and twigs crunched loudly beneath Kurt's feet and small branches snapped as he pushed through them. His heavy panting from running so hard was quite audible also.

Kurt's legs were beginning to ache and his heart was pounding and his throat burned as his lungs struggled to obtain oxygen. He felt mildly pathetic that he was already exhausted and hasn't even run that far yet, and could even feel himself slowing down.

Was Blaine following him? He hasn't heard any footsteps behind him the whole time he's been running, but he didn't want to risk looking back to make sure and end up tripping over a tree root. Now that he's been running for a while though and still hasn't heard anything, and was getting tired, he decided to risk it.

Throwing a glance over his shoulder, Kurt saw….no one.

His pace slowed from a hard sprint to a run, knowing it wasn't smart to stop yet. Just because he couldn't see Blaine didn't mean he wasn't still trying to look for him, and Kurt really just wanted to find his way out of these woods.

His eyes looked forward again, feeling almost triumphant that he may possibly have lost his captor already. He could be home in no time. His father must be worried sick-

Kurt barely registered the figure leaping at him from the side in his peripheral vision until a pair of arms wrapped around his waist and threw him off his feet.

As the two fell to the floor, Blaine pivoted at the last second so that Kurt landed on top of him. His father had been very clear that he wasn't to bring any harm to the prince, and if he allowed Kurt to fall face first on the forest floor it was sure to leave some bruises. Blaine took most of the fall as he landed on his back, but didn't feel very much pain.

Kurt realized he was squeezing his eyes shut as he had expected to feel pain somewhere, but there was none. He opened his eyes, and found himself staring down at Blaine. He yelped in surprise and began to struggle to get away, but Blaine didn't release his hold on him. Instead he picked Kurt up with him as he stood and turned him around, easily locking Kurt's arms behind his back despite the prince's whole-hearted attempts to fight him off.

"Let me go!" Kurt shouted, refusing to give up his struggle. Blaine held Kurt's wrists in one hand and locked his other arm around Kurt's upper chest just under his neck, holding Kurt still against Blaine's chest. He didn't want to lock his arm around Kurt's neck because, again, he didn't want to hurt him.

Kurt was a couple inches taller than Blaine, but did not have nearly as much strength as him. Blaine subdued him easily because of this, which really pissed Kurt off. He couldn't stand the feeling of being helpless.

"I don't want to hurt you, I really don't, but if you try and escape again, I'm going to have to knock you unconscious. I'm sure you don't want that, right?" Blaine said calmly in Kurt's ear.

Kurt closed his eyes and tried very hard not to cry. He felt helpless and vulnerable and angry and scared and, damn it, he hated Blaine so much for making him feel this way, for taking him from his home.

"No…I don't…" Kurt murmured, trying not to sound as defeated as he felt.

Blaine sensed the change in emotion from Kurt, felt it in the way Kurt gave up and went still in his arms. And it actually made Blaine feel guilty. Kurt was a prince, a man of royalty and dignity…

…whose father caused the deaths of thousands of his country's men, destroyed so many families, pillaged villages and towns and then took them over for himself. Blaine forced himself to remember why he was doing this, and the guilt washed away.

"Good. Let's go then," Blaine said gruffly, releasing his hold on Kurt, except where he grabbed a hold of Kurt's upper arm and pulled him along as Blaine began walking back in their former direction.

"I can walk on my own, thank you very much," Kurt spat, trying to pull his arm away, but Blaine only tightened his grip.

"Sorry, prince, but that privilege has been revoked."

"You should know, I really hate you," Kurt growled.

"And here I thought we were developing such a great relationship," Blaine smirked.

* * *

><p>The walk to Spade took about a half hour, and was silent except for occasional witty remarks from Kurt and sarcastic replies from Blaine.<p>

Kurt did actually feel quite relieved when the two emerged from the dense forest onto a dirt road. From there it was a very short walk before a large archway came into view that he knew must have been the entrance to Spade.

Stone walls about seven feet high surrounded the small town, and there were two guards standing at either side of the entrance. Blaine didn't break his hold on Kurt's arm as they approached the town, and Kurt felt more than embarrassed.

"Welcome, Blaine! I see the mission was a success," one of the guards said, glancing at Kurt.

"That isn't a surprise though, from someone as skilled as you," the other guard chimed in.

Kurt stared at them in shock, and then looked at Blaine, his ocean eyes furious. "Is the whole town in on this or something?" he hissed.

Blaine ignored Kurt and smiled at the guards. "I appreciate the praise, but don't congratulate me yet. Any news for me?" he asked.

"Sebastian came in this morning. He said you'll know where to meet him," the guard on the left answered.

Blaine thanked him and entered the town, pulling a very shocked and angry Kurt along.

The realization that no one in Spade was going to help him absolutely crushed Kurt. If the guards of the place were perfectly fine with his kidnapping, then he knew that every citizen in this town probably felt the same. After all, Spade was an ally of Vastar. They might all hate Prince Kurt, but the whole time they had been walking through the woods, Kurt had desperately relied on finding someone who might be able to help him once they reached Spade. Now those hopes were shattered.

"Are you ever going to explain to me what the hell you kidnapped me for?"

Blaine looked over at Kurt, a little confused by his tone of voice in the question. The question wasn't angry, the prince didn't raise his voice. He actually sounded…defeated, and for some strange reason, it bothered Blaine to hear him like that.

"Yes, but not now," he answered. Blaine let go of Kurt's arm. He would catch him in an instant if he tried to run again, but hoped Kurt wasn't foolish enough to even think about it.

* * *

><p>"You have got to be kidding me," Kurt said.<p>

After following Blaine through the little town a bit, holding his chin up and trying to ignore the stares he received from people, which ranged from awestruck to downright nasty, Blaine had led him to an alleyway between two buildings. Despite the shining midday sun beating upon them, the buildings were close enough that the alleyway was clouded in shadows.

Blaine looked back over his shoulder at Kurt, partially hidden in the shadows. "What?" he asked, confused.

"A dark alley? This is your meeting place? You don't find this a little cliché at all?" Kurt raised an eyebrow.

Blaine let out a short laugh. "Well, when you put it that way…"

"I'm not going in there."

Blaine chuckled and rolled his eyes. "What? Are you afraid you might be _kidnapped_?"

Kurt narrowed his eyes at him, scowling slightly. _No, you asshole, actually I'm afraid you might slit my throat_, he thought, but kept his mouth shut and reluctantly continued to follow Blaine.

The man awaiting them at the end of the alley was leaning back against the wall of one of the buildings, flipping a dagger into the air and then catching it over and over again. Fear gripped Kurt at the sight, and he was so tempted to turn and run again, but as soon as the man spotted them, he stood up straight and slipped the dagger back into its sheath at his hip.

"Well, it's about time! I was almost starting to worry about you, Blaine," the man grinned and came forward to give Blaine a friendly embrace.

"Sorry, Sebastian, there was a bit of a…hold up on the way here," Blaine answered after returning the hug.

Sebastian was wearing the same uniform as Blaine, but his tunic was white with a red insignia on the front rather than the black with purple insignia Blaine had on. At first glance, Sebastian looked a lot…weaker than Blaine, not as soldier-like. His figure was tall and lanky, but if you looked closely you could see the fabric on his arms was stretched over toned muscle.

The look Sebastian gave Kurt was far from friendly, and he started to say something to Blaine in a language Kurt didn't understand.

"English, please," Kurt cut him off, already annoyed with this man.

Sebastian looked at Kurt with an expression that a mixture of surprise and anger. The two stared each other down for a moment, clearly sizing each other up, and then Sebastian chuckled. "Well, isn't he a fiery one," he said to Blaine.

"You have no idea," Blaine muttered, Kurt's little escape attempt in the woods immediately coming to mind.

"You two going to continue to talk about me like I'm not here or is someone going to explain what the hell you kidnapped me for?" Kurt glared, crossing his arms over his chest.

Sebastian's green eyes narrowed at Kurt. "I can't tell if the fact that you can speak with such an obnoxious attitude to two armed assassins makes you incredibly brave or incredibly stupid," he said in a menacing tone.

Kurt tried to keep on a brave face, but the word 'assassins' caught him completely off guard and he knew Sebastian caught the flash of fear in his eyes by the way his lips curled up in a smug smirk.

"If you ask me, _Prince_ Kurt," Sebastian stepped towards Kurt slowly, his hand resting on the hilt of his dagger," I'd say you were being kind of stupid." He stopped in front of Kurt, their faces inches apart.

Kurt summoned every ounce of courage he had to put on a brave face and hide how frightened he was. The word 'assassin' repeated over and over in his head. Of course that's what Blaine was. Kurt knew he was a soldier of some sort, but not in the King of Vastar's army because he knew what their armor looked like. But the blades, the matching uniforms, Blaine's incredible stealth…these two belonged to a band of assassins.

"Sebastian, enough," Blaine commanded.

Sebastian gave one last lingering glare at Kurt before turning back to Blaine reluctantly. Kurt held in a sigh of relief, and realized that, of the two, Blaine seemed to be the one in charge. Perhaps that was why his uniform was a different color; he was a higher rank than Sebastian.

"Right. Well, Devarion successfully gave the king the ultimatum this morning…" Sebastian trailed off.

"And?" Blaine pressed.

Sebastian glanced at Kurt, surprisingly looking almost sympathetic before turning his eyes back to Blaine.

"He refused to forfeit."


	4. Chapter 4

Kurt did not like the looks Blaine and Sebastian gave him after that statement.

"Refused to forfeit what? Are either of you going to explain anything to me?" he asked, thoroughly annoyed at the fact that this was the third time he's asked and has yet to receive an answer.

Blaine sighed and seemed very reluctant as he turned to Kurt. His expression was sympathetic, but there was a slight flash of anger that he covered up quickly before speaking.

"Kurt…our plan in kidnapping you was to use you as a sort of…ransom against Renova. We gave your father an ultimatum. If he agreed to forfeit the war against Vastar and give us back our land, we would return you safely…" he trailed off, letting Kurt soak in that information.

The prince repeated Blaine's words in his head. Okay, so at least they weren't just going to kill him for revenge like he originally thought.

Sebastian said his father refused to forfeit though. Kurt paled.

"What's supposed to happen then…if my father refused…?" his voice came out in a hoarse whisper, because he was afraid of what the answer was going to be.

"We told him that if he refused…you would be killed," Blaine admitted. It wasn't supposed to happen this way. The King of Vastar and Devarion were sure when they formulated this plan that the King of Renova would give in and save his son. The fact that the man refused, basically saying he didn't care if his son died, was completely despicable. If Blaine didn't hate the man before, he sure did now.

Especially since Blaine was the one that was ordered to kill Prince Kurt if his father declined. He honestly didn't want to have to do that, but would if necessary.

There was a long silence. Kurt felt his body began to quiver as he mulled this situation over in his head. His father refused…knowing it meant he would idie/i. The plethora of emotions that surged through the prince caused him to sway, and Blaine reached forward and grabbed Kurt's arms when he realized he was about to faint.

Despite the fact that he strongly disliked him, Kurt held onto Blaine's sleeves tightly to keep himself upright. Hot tears were clouding his vision, and he pushed away from Blaine and turned around to hide them from the two assassins' view.

"So…this is it? You're going to kill me?" Kurt asked with an underlying anger in his shaky voice.

Blaine opened his mouth, but Sebastian spoke first, "Not yet."

Both Blaine and Kurt turned to stare at him. Sebastian rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "Devarion believes the reason the king refused is because he thinks he can find you himself before he needs to forfeit. Unfortunately, we can't just kill you because if he finds out we did, he would have nothing left to lose, and the war would only get worse," he explained.

"Ah, I see. So we're going with the backup plan then?" Blaine asked. Sebastian nodded.

"What backup plan?" Kurt asked, sounding almost hopeful. After all, anything is better than having to potentially have his head chopped off, or however it was they planned on killing him.

* * *

><p>"There's no way to tell for sure, but I believe the prince was here at some point. There are shackles on the bed, and the dresser has been rifled through recently," a knight proclaimed as him and another knight exited the small cabin.<p>

Puck sighed at this news and glanced around, his piercing brown eyes scanning the forest. The sound of horseshoes on the forest floor, rustling branches and leaves, and men shouting back and forth filled the air. The search party sent by the King of Renova to find the prince was made up of twenty men, all determined to bring the king's son back safe and sound.

"Let's search this area more closely. Perhaps we can figure out which direction they went in," Puck commanded, and the three men with him nodded in agreement.

Noah Puckerman, a colonel in Renova's army, was put in charge of Kurt's search party for a number of reasons. He was focused, strategic, and level-headed, but the main reason was because he was a good friend of Kurt's. One of the few that the prince had in the castle.

Not only was he incredibly determined to rescue Kurt, but he also couldn't wait to make the bastard who took him pay.

Suddenly, a knight's voice began calling out loudly through the trees. "Colonel! Over here! Clothing! We found the prince's clothing!"

Puck's heart sank. He jumped on his horse's back and rode in the direction of the voice. _God, please let Kurt be okay._

* * *

><p>After Blaine and Sebastian refused to give him any information on this backup plan of theirs, which was highly frustrating, Sebastian and Blaine talked for a moment in a different language and then Sebastian went his separate way, giving Kurt nothing but a hard glare as a goodbye.<p>

"What language was that?" Kurt asked once Sebastian was gone.

"Latin," Blaine gave him a small, sort of timid smile and then began walking out of the alley. "Come on, looks like we're going to be staying in town for the night."

Blaine brought Kurt to one of the many small, shabby houses of Spade. The place only had a small bedroom, a kitchen, and a bathroom; a very drastic change from the prince's own extravagant home. When they had entered the house, Blaine had eyed the bed rather longingly, and it occurred to Kurt that he probably hadn't slept at all last night.

"You want to take a nap?" Kurt asked, trying to make it sound completely casual as he walked to the middle of the tiny kitchen, scanning the place with a not-so-satisfied look on his face.

Blaine chuckled softly. As if he would ever be that stupid. "No, of course not, but you can if you'd like," he offered.

Kurt looked at him, eyebrows knitted in slight confusion at the politeness in Blaine's tone. "I slept enough last night, remember? You made sure of that."

The smile on Blaine's face faltered, and the two of them stared at each other, obvious tension in the air.

"Look…as it turns out, we may be stuck with each other for a while. I don't want this any more than you do, but I think it would make things easier if we acted more…civil…toward each other," Blaine said, trying to choose his words carefully.

Not carefully enough though. Kurt's ocean-colored eyes turned dark. "Oh? You think we can _get along_?" he let out a harsh laugh. He knew it would probably be smart not to argue with Blaine, but at the moment, he was far too fed up with everything to care. "_You drugged me and kidnapped me from my home._ You told me that you might have to _kill_ me. If you think I could treat you as anything but a filthy criminal, then you have got it so wrong," he said, his voice rising with each word.

"_I'm_ the criminal?" Blaine narrowed his eyes at Kurt. Considering what the Hummels have done to the people of Vastar, Blaine hardly considered this criminal. "Well, your highness, I hate to tell you this, but this wouldn't be happening to you if it weren't for you and your goddamn father trying to tear my country apart!" Blaine growled, his hazel eyes blazing.

Kurt took a step towards Blaine, his fists clenched at his sides. "First of all, this isn't something that's just 'happening to me'. This is all your damn fault! Second of all, I have nothing to do with the stupid war between our countries!"

Blaine's voice turned low and menacing, and he didn't hesitate to step towards Kurt as well, the two were standing barely a foot apart in the tiny kitchen. "Don't give me that bullshit. While your father has his army slaughtering our men, women, and children, you probably sit idly by in that damn palace of yours letting it happen. You probably have servants feeding grapes into your mouth while our villages affected by the war starve!"

Kurt's hand shot forward to slap Blaine, but Blaine caught his wrist before it could reach its target. The prince didn't give up and raised his other hand, but Blaine was fast and grabbed that one as well, turning Kurt and pushing his back against a wall, pinning his wrists against it on either side of his head.

"Did I strike a nerve? It's because I'm right, isn't it?" Blaine said in that snarky tone of his that annoyed Kurt so much.

"Shut up! You really think I don't care about what my father is doing?" Kurt spat, struggling against Blaine's grip. The fact that it didn't look like Blaine was putting much of a strain on himself to restrain Kurt infuriated the prince even more.

"Why would you? It's not like any of it affects your perfect royal life!" Blaine shouted back.

"You. Know. _Nothing_. About. My. Life," Kurt snarled, his eyes glaring daggers into Blaine's golden ones.

"Tell me about it then. I would love to hear all about the fancy clothes, the feasts, the furniture made out of gold-"

"You are infuriating! Let me go right now!"

"Are you going to attack me again?"

"Yes!"

"Then no."

Kurt brought his knee up to try and hit Blaine where it would really hurt, but he was greatly underestimating Blaine's reflexes. Blaine dodged it easily with a twist of the hips, and pressed his legs against Kurt's to hold them against the wall as well.

Kurt squirmed. Blaine was far too close for comfort, and struggling wasn't any help at all now. Kurt bit his bottom lip and shut his eyes. Helplessness was settling in again, and Kurt hated the feeling so much.

"Let me go," he said again, his voice a small, almost pleading whisper.

Blaine did immediately and backed up to the other side of kitchen to give Kurt space. He felt a twinge of guilt as he watched Kurt smooth his shirt, a rather disheartening look on his face. Blaine knew he probably shouldn't have pinned him like that. He let his anger take control and forgot about what he wanted to do, which was try and get along with Kurt.

Kurt finally lifted his eyes to Blaine, and the two stared at each for a long while before Blaine finally sighed and put his hands up. "Look…you're pissed. I get it. I can't imagine how it you must feel after your father…did what he did…" he said in a calmer tone.

Kurt scoffed and rolled his eyes. Blaine wasn't wrong though. His father practically rejected him. "Yeah, and for some reason you guys are taking your anger at him out on _me_," he complained, but his voice also more calmed down than before.

Blaine cringed. "I…shouldn't have gotten so angry with you…but if you've seen the things that I have seen…it's just difficult not to feel as strongly as I do."

The two became silent again as Kurt eyes Blaine warily. He sounded sincerely apologetic, and as much as Kurt wanted to just purely despise him with his entire being…Kurt understood where he was coming from.

"I told you…I don't agree with this war either…" Kurt said, his expression softening. "I know it might be hard for you to believe, but I want this to end as much as you do. You aren't the only one losing people out on the battlefield."

Sadness overcame Blaine as he realized Kurt was right. Sure, Renova was to blame, but that didn't mean they weren't experiencing hardships as well.

"I apologize for losing my temper. I shouldn't have reacted that way. You have every right to be angry with me," Blaine said with utmost sincerity, gazing at Kurt with a small, apologetic smile on his face.

Kurt felt a twinge in his heart as his eyes made contact with Blaine's. He never fully realized what an incredible color they were. They shone as bright as his father's golden crown, and were practically the same color, too.

Wait was he thinking? Who cares about Blaine's eyes? Kurt realized he was blushing and looked down. "Yeah, well….maybe I shouldn't have called you a filthy criminal…I mean you're not filthy at all, you're actually surprisingly well-kept, though no offense you are still pretty much a criminal because you did kidnap me and all, and-," he took a deep breath and smiled sheepishly, putting a hand to his head," I'm rambling, aren't I?"

"Yes, but it's alright. Hopefully it means you forgive me. Now, I don't know about you, but I'm starving. You can take a seat and I'll make us something," Blaine offered, gesturing to the little dining table for two placed in the corner of the kitchen.

Kurt stared in slight surprise as Blaine turned and began looking through the cupboards. He didn't say anything as he walked over and took a seat, watching Blaine silently. What just happened? Did he forgive Blaine? Maybe for the argument they just had, sure, but not for kidnapping him. He couldn't…..could he?

So many conflicting feelings were stirring within him, and it was beginning to give the prince a headache. It almost felt as though…he and Blaine had reached some sort of understanding with each other, but he wanted to slap himself for thinking that. Blaine was the enemy here, right?

His own father rejected him though.

But he didn't know that for sure, did he?

Blaine started up a fire on the stove, and it appeared as though he were planning on cooking some sort of stew. His kidnapper cooking food for him. Kurt shook his head at the notion. How was any of this really happening?

It seemed as though Blaine wasn't planning on starting up any conversation, so Kurt decided to take it upon himself to ask questions.

"So…I don't understand. If you're really assassins like Sebastian said, why don't you actually do what your title implies and assassinate my father?" he asked.

Blaine paused his task of chopping up the vegetables he had on the counter and looked at Kurt, slightly taken aback at the straightforwardness of the question. He chewed his lip as he contemplated on whether to answer or not.

"Oh no, you don't. I am _sick_ of you withholding answers from me! If you really want me to act 'civil' towards you, you'll tell me what I want to know," Kurt said sternly.

Having Kurt around was proving to be quite entertaining. Being the son of the leader of Gladius Occultus, very few people dared speak to him the way Kurt did. Blaine was pleased at the fact that Kurt had a lot of spirit, and wasn't the petty weakling Blaine had always pictured him to be.

"Ah, using my words against me, huh? And you call me the criminal," Blaine chuckled, throwing Kurt a mischievous smirk before returning to cutting vegetables. He didn't see the blush that spread across Kurt's face.

"We did consider that, of course, but we felt that doing so would be…hypocritical. There was no sense in trying to end bloodshed with more bloodshed. And before you say anything, no, we never really plan on killing you at all," Blaine said as Kurt opened his mouth to refute.

Kurt's eyebrow raised in confusion. "So...you're saying that back in the alleyway...you were just trying to scare the hell out of me for no reason?"

Blaine poured the vegetables in the pot of boiling water he had placed over the flames and began to stir. "No…I'm saying that we will do absolutely everything necessary to make sure this situation won't have to come to that," he frowned.

"Who is 'we'?" Kurt questioned.

"The Gladius Occultus. That's the name of our band of assassins. We're rather well known throughout Vastar," Blaine answered simply. "Dinner's ready. You can question me more later," he said, and poured some of the vegetable soup into two bowls. He brought them to the table, placing one in front of Kurt and sitting down across from him with his own bowl.

"It's not poisoned, is it?"

Blaine rolled his eyes. "You watched me make it."

Kurt eyed the soup skeptically, but when the smell hit his nostrils, his stomach rumbled in yearning. He looked up and saw Blaine practically halfway finished, and figured it must be safe and took a spoonful. "I'm surprised. You're actually quite a decent cook," he said after he swallowed the bite.

"Now what is that supposed to mean?" Blaine laughed, and Kurt couldn't hold back a small smile.

"You're no royal chef is all I mean," Kurt teased before taking another bite.

"Well, I'm sorry. I'll make a note that the next time I kidnap a prince, I'll make sure to kidnap the necessary servants as well."

Kurt knew it was a joke, but his smile faltered anyway. "Well, you could have at least let me have brought some personal items along," he grumbled.

Blaine chuckled and took another spoonful of soup, but paused before he put it in his mouth, something clicking in his head. His eyes widened suddenly and he looked up at Kurt in alarm. "Your clothes. Where are they?"

Kurt stared at him, confused by Blaine's sudden change in emotion. "Clothes…?" he trailed off, instantly realizing what Blaine was talking about. His clothes that he had to change out of, that he had been carrying with him through the woods…the ones he had dropped when he tried to escape. Kurt paled, his blue eyes widening slightly.

Blaine slammed his fist down on the table, and Kurt flinched at the noise. "You left them in the forest, didn't you?" he demanded. There was a flash of fear in Kurt's eyes as he nodded quickly.

Cursing, Blaine stood up and began to pace back and forth, running a hand through his curly, dark hair in exasperation. Kurt watched him warily. No matter what understanding him and Blaine reached with each other earlier, the man was still an assassin, his kidnapper, and there was no guarantee that he would not hurt him, no matter how many times he said he wouldn't.

"We need to leave Spade. _Now_."


	5. Chapter 5

**OMG you guys so I'm so new to using this website so I have no clue if this is how I put in author's notes or not, but I'm just going to write here anyway lol**

**So I apologize in advance for this chapter. It is definitely not my best, and that's probably because it's more of a filler chapter. Next chapter will be so much more interesting though. Anyways, I forgot to mention at the beginning of the story that Kurt's father is not Burt. Since this is very AU, character's backgrounds are going to be very different in most aspects. Oh, and I love, love, LOVE reviews! ;D**

Puck clenched the night garments in his fist, cursing under his breath. These were definitely Kurt's, but luckily they didn't have blood or even that much dirt on them. It looked as though they were just casually dropped here, and recently, too.

"So, if they stayed in that cabin, then they're obviously heading in this direction now," he grumbled, looking up and through the trees. "Looks like we're going to be crossing the border into Vastar."

"Spade is the closest town to us at the moment. I know it has a weak defense. If they have the Prince there, it won't be hard to get him back," someone chimed in.

"Yes, but it would be quite stupid of them to stay somewhere so close. We'll look anyway though. Let's go, but still keep an eye out as we go through the forest," Puck commanded. He put Kurt's clothes in the saddlebag on his horse and jumped on. The others followed him once he took off in the direction of Spade.

* * *

><p>"I don't suppose we can buy me some new clothes when we get to wherever it is we're headed, can we?" Prince Kurt asked.<p>

"Don't know what you want them for. We need to keep you looking inconspicuous," Blaine answered groggily.

"Again with this 'we', you mean _you_," Kurt scowled.

The two of them were sitting in the back a merchant's caravan along with boxes of various fruits and vegetables, and Kurt wasn't hiding the fact that he was incredibly annoyed and uncomfortable. There weren't benches so they had to sit on the wood floor, and the ride was way too bumpy. The boxes of tomatoes next to Kurt would rattle at every dip or bump in the road, and Kurt feared they were going to come tumbling down on him.

Blaine was much more relaxed. He was lying on his back next to Kurt, ankles crossed, looking completely at ease with hands behind his head and eyes closed. He figured he would take this ride as an opportunity to get a bit of sleep. However, it didn't turn out to exactly be the nap he had hoped for. Prince Kurt's incessant complaints kept him drifting in and out of sleep.

After realizing Kurt had left his clothes in the woods, Blaine and Kurt left the little house in Spade immediately. Blaine knew what he needed to do, and that was to get to the nearest post office as fast as possible. The sun had been setting, and luckily a very kind merchant overheard him speaking with a guard about needing a horse, and offered them a ride seeing as he was about to head out to a trading post that passed right by the post office.

Knowing the ride from Spade to the post office would take only about an hour by caravan, much faster than walking, Blaine thanked the man and took up his offer. He had also been quite amused by the look on Kurt's face as Blaine gestured for Kurt to climb in first.

Night had fallen now, and they were to be arriving at their destined location soon. Kurt glanced down at Blaine when he didn't reply to his comment and saw that he had drifted to sleep again.

To be honest, Kurt had purposely been trying to keep Blaine awake the whole trip. Partly in an attempt to just annoy him, but mostly so that Blaine would be so exhausted by the time they stopped anywhere to rest that he would hopefully fall in a deep sleep and Kurt would be able to slip away more easily.

Kurt had felt a renewed sense of hope when he had been watching Blaine scramble around looking for a ride out of Spade. Since he did drop his clothes in the woods, the search party that definitely had to be looking for him would have surely found them by now, and were headed this way. He would be rescued. Maybe not here, but soon.

Kurt noticed how, even as he slept, Blaine somehow still managed to look on guard and alert, his jaw clenched, as though he were prepared to have to jump in fight in seconds. A thought suddenly hit Kurt. When he was rescued, Blaine was going to be executed.

_He deserves it…_ Kurt thought, turning his eyes away because looking at Blaine while he thought such things was making him feel guilty. He shouldn't feel guilty though! So why did he?

"Are we almost there yet?" he asked loudly in attempt to distract himself from his thoughts.

Blaine grunted and half-opened his eyes. "I hope so. Maybe then you'll stop complaining…" he said sleepily.

Coincidently, the caravan came to a halt just then, and the merchant's voice called out from the driver's seat, "Here you are, boys!"

Blaine was up and wide awake in a second, and Kurt knew his thoughts about Blaine looking as though he were prepared to wake up and fight in a moment's notice were right. Maybe it was assassin training 101. He wondered at what point Blaine would be taught to just sleep with his eyes opened.

Blaien jumped out of the covered wagon, Kurt following behind, and walked over to the merchant to thank him and shake his hand. The merchant left right after, and Blaine waved his hand at Kurt to follow him.

Wow, and Kurt thought Spade was tiny. The location they were at was a small ranch-a post office with a general store next to it, and then farm land that stretched on for acres. To the left a little ways was the ranch house, barn, and stables.

"Come on, your highness, we don't have all night," Blaine called out. Kurt snapped to attention and saw Blaine was at the door of the post office waiting for him. He rolled his eyes and walked over, entering the small building as Blaine held the door open for him.

"Hi, can I help you?" the woman at the front desk asked.

Blaine walked up to her and said something in a low voice. Kurt couldn't make it out, but the woman seemed to understand Blaine's urgency and she merely nodded before quickly retrieving a piece of paper and pen for Blaine from the desk drawers.

Kurt glanced over Blaine's shoulder as he scrawled quickly across the page, but it was no use. The words were in Latin. Of course.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Not now, Kurt," Blaine said sharply, and Kurt glared at him even though Blaine couldn't see. It was then that he realized the woman at the desk was eyeing him with an unreadable expression. He was slightly taken aback by this. Did she know who he was? Could she maybe help him?

No, it was more than evident that this woman must be on Blaine's side. If she did know who he was, she probably hated him as much as the rest of Vastar seemed to.

Blaine folded the letter and handed it to the woman. "Thank you, and also, we're going to need a horse."

And apparently what Blaine needs, Blaine gets. Kurt was shocked when the girl just handed him a horse. He didn't pay or give them anything.

Blaine jumped on the lovely steed and looked to Kurt. "Hop on."

"You're joking," Kurt raised an eyebrow.

"Are you going to pull a line like that every time I ask you to do something?" Blaine retorted, but sternly instead of in his normal joking tone.

"Where are we even going?"

"Get on the horse and I'll tell you."

Kurt hesitated, but then sighed and approached the horse. He had to get uncomfortably close to Blaine as he reached his hands up to hold the saddle and pull himself up. Everything was even more uncomfortable when he was seated right behind Blaine and there was no avoiding them touching.

"And I can't have my own horse because…?" Kurt huffed.

"You'll try and run off on said horse?" Blaine finished, and flicked the reins.

The horse took off in a gallop, and Kurt was forced to hold onto Blaine to stay steady. His hands were more gripping Blaine's tunic rather than actually holding onto his hips though. Despite the speed, Kurt was trying as much as possible to keep himself separated from Blaine.

"Alright, talk! Where are we going?" Kurt asked, raising his voice slightly so Blaine could hear him over the horse's pounding footsteps.

"Crylan City. We have a small headquarters there. It's about a four day trip from here though," Blaine answered.

_Four days? _Kurt felt sick at the thought. He was stuck with Blaine for another four days, and probably _even more_.

After a long while, Blaine slowed up, not wanting to run the poor horse to exhaustion. The ride was not close to being over though. Blaine planned on traveling most of the night. He needed to put as much distance between them and whoever might be searching for Kurt as possible before they needed to stop. He steered off the road and into the forest. The more they stayed away from areas where people could spot them, the better. Besides, cutting through the forest instead of staying on roads the entire way would shorten the trip.

For the first couple hours, Kurt made it his mission to annoy Blaine with questions. However, Kurt gave up on asking about the mysterious back up plan after about the fifteenth time since Blaine made it clear he wasn't giving him any information on that yet. "Are we there yet?" was Kurt's favorite though. Blaine's shoulders tensed in annoyance every time.

Another couple hours and Kurt was beginning to feel extremely drowsy. The fact that the horse was at a walking speed didn't help because the rhythmic pace was soothing in a way and only made him sleepier. At one point he almost considered resting his head against Blaine's back so he could sleep, but shook that idea away quickly because there was no way he was snuggling with his kidnapper.

"Hey…are we stopping soon?" he asked, letting out a yawn.

"Soon." It was nearly midnight, and Blaine could barely see where they were going anymore, so he planned on stopping once they found a good spot.

'Soon' came about a half hour later when they reached a small clearing in the trees. Blaine pulled on the reins to stop the horse and slid off. "We'll stay here the rest of the night" he said.

Kurt slid off the horse a little clumsily due to the fact that he was sleepy and could barely see the floor. He wondered if Blaine could see the disgusted look on his face. Having to sleep on the forest floor was going to be a nightmare. Blaine obviously saw it because Kurt heard him chuckle very softly before walking past Kurt to get to the large saddlebags strapped on the very back of the horse.

"Here. Two blankets. Make yourself comfortable," Blaine said as he handed them to Kurt.

"Yeah, right," Kurt mumbled, turning and walking around a little to find the flattest piece of land to lay the blankets on. At least they were made of thick wool because it was chilly out and they would hopefully provide good cushion.

About 10 minutes later, he discovered that they really didn't. They were warm, but the ground was still uncomfortable and the cushion of the blankets did little to help. Kurt shifted and tried to spot Blaine in the darkness. "Hey…where are you?" he hissed.

"Over here," Blaine answered. Kurt couldn't see, but Blaine was tying the horse's reins around a tree. "You go ahead and sleep. I'm going to find some firewood."

"You can't leave me alone here in the dark!"

"Are you scared?" Blaine laughed.

Kurt blushed, and was glad that Blaine probably couldn't see it. "No," he pouted. It was a lie though. Of course he was scared. He was in the middle of a dark forest that could have wolves or bears or…other assassins in it for all he knew.

"Relax, I'm staying within hearing distance," Blaine said, and Kurt could hear his light footsteps crunching leaves as he walked away. Not too far though, like he said. Kurt was able to hear his footsteps the whole time and could tell when he was stopping to pick up branches. It was oddly comforting. He drifted to sleep much faster than he thought he would.

* * *

><p>"Someone we're looking may be within these walls. Just let us search without resistance and we won't bring harm to anyone in this town," Puck demanded.<p>

Colonel Puck and his twenty men stood in formation in front of the entrance to Spade, swords drawn. There were six guards blocking the entrance, swords drawn as well, but their fear was obvious by the way they shivered in their boots.

Even though Spade was so close to Renova, Vastar's king didn't see it necessary to waste troops on protecting them when it wasn't likely that they were to be attacked. There was nothing in Spade that Renova could want. The King had been right, Renova didn't care about Spade. However, they actually might have something Renova wants now, and so they were nearly defenseless.

One guard finally spoke up. "You're looking for the prince, aren't you? The one who was kidnapped?"

The other guards looked at him incredulously, willing him to shut up with their glares.

"So he is here?" Puck asked, feeling slightly hopeful.

"No, he's not."

Puck glared. "I don't believe you. So step aside and let us in or trust me, I won't hesitate to let my men here put a blade through your skull."

"No! Wh-what I mean is…he was here…earlier! He left though!" the guard admitted frantically.

Puck pondered this for a moment. It made sense that the kidnapper wouldn't keep Kurt here after all, but he wasn't leaving until he was allowed to search for himself.

"I can show you the place they stayed in…so you'll see I'm not lying," the guard added.

Puck smirked. "Very well then. Lead the way."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Warning-Attempted noncon (not between Blaine and Kurt) and extreme violence. **

* * *

><p>When morning came, Blaine had a campfire set up a couple feet away from Kurt. The air was cold and foggy, and he didn't want either of them getting sick. He didn't sleep much at all through the night. He had to stay alert in case anyone came looking for them, and keep an eye on Kurt.<p>

Blaine was incredibly on edge. It's not like he pictured this mission would go smoothly, but he hadn't expected these types of complications so early. The fact that the king wouldn't give up the war to save his son still pissed him off, but it wasn't unexpected. However, since it was likely Kurt's clothing he had left in the forest has been found, Blaine had to redirect his original planned route to the Palace of Vastar to go to Crylan City. Whoever the King of Renova had sent to look for Kurt would hopefully assume the Palace would be where they were taking him, and since Crylan was in a completely different direction, Blaine hoped their pursuers would lose their trail.

Kurt stirred, and Blaine glanced over. His ocean blue eyes fluttered open, and it was probably sinful that Blaine couldn't help but admire what an amazing color they were. He quickly averted his eyes back to the fire, feeling rather ashamed and confused that he would even think about that.

"Good morning, your highness," he said, grabbing a small branch from the pile he had collected and placing it into the fire.

Looking back at Kurt when he didn't respond, he found the prince staring back and forth between him and fire in confusion. Blaine watched as realization fell upon Kurt and those blue eyes became tinged with sadness, which made Blaine's heart clench.

"Since you're awake, we should start moving," Blaine sighed and stood up. He walked over to their horse and opened up one of the saddlebags. Tina, the woman from the post office, had been kind enough to give them a few supplies, including the blankets, matches, two water canteens, and a loaf of bread.

He broke off a decent-sized piece of bread and walked back over to Kurt, who was now sitting up and staring blankly at the fire. "Here," he said softly, holding the bread," I know it's not exactly lobster thermidor, but it's all we've got right now."

Kurt glared up at him.

"Sorry…that was rude," Blaine frowned.

After a long pause, Kurt muttered "Thanks" and took the bread from Blaine. His first bite was reluctant, but then he wolfed it down rather eagerly. Considering all he ate yesterday was one bowl of Blaine's stew, he was famished.

There was silence as they got ready to leave. Blaine put out the fire and tried to scatter the remainders thoroughly to hide the fact that they were here. Kurt helpfully folded the blankets back into the saddlebag, much to Blaine's surprise, and then the two left the little clearing.

* * *

><p>It was a long day of travel. The sun was high above them in the sky, signaling the time as mid-day, when they emerged from the forest. Kurt took in the landscape-sloping green hills and meadows growing patches of wildflowers, a farming town down the road with acres of sowed land, and more dense forest in the distance.<p>

"We'll go into town and stock up on food, considering you ate our entire loaf of bread," Blaine said, heading down the trail towards the buildings in the distance.

"Don't blame me! You ate some, too!"

"I had barely a quarter of the loaf."

"Yeah, well, I'm not used to living off so little food for this long."

"It's only been a day and a half."

The bickering continued all the way until they reached the farmer's market. Blaine found a post to tie up the horse, and then the two of them starting wandering around the various stalls selling all sorts of different merchandise. There were mostly food stands, but some sold clothing and jewelry as well, or some had medicines and other general supplies.

Kurt was shocked by how the townspeople reacted to Blaine. The few who were unaware of what the symbol on his uniform stood for gave him confused looks, but most people who would acknowledge him as they walked by with a smile or a nod of the head. A couple people even greeted him and shook his hand, and Blaine was very friendly and polite with all of them, returning the acknowledgments.

"You want me to dress inconspicuous, yet here you are parading around in that outfit. You aren't afraid of all this attention you're drawing to yourself?" Kurt asked, raising an eyebrow.

Blaine smiled. "Well, this insignia is most definitely well-known. A lot of people are aware of what the Gladius Occultus has done to help the country. It doesn't matter if people recognize me, however, as long as they don't know who you are we're okay."

"Speak for yourself. I'm dying in these rags."

"That's a bit dramatic, no?" Blaine chuckled.

As the two approached one of the food stands and began arguing over what to buy, they were completely unaware of the two men a couple stalls down that had set their sights on Kurt.

"…that's definitely him," one of them whispered.

"I know. What do we do?"

"What do you think? We're going to get a little payback," the man smirked.

* * *

><p>"My legs are getting stiff from having to sit on this damn horse all day," Kurt whined.<p>

"We're stopping to make camp soon. I know a little place near here that's perfect," Blaine said.

The sun was setting, turning the sky and clouds pretty shades of orange, pink, and yellow. They had long passed the open fields and meadows and were in the woods once again, but have stayed on the road for quite a while. Now Blaine turned into the trees, and after riding a little ways a narrow trail began to form which they followed.

Kurt gasped. The trail lead to another clearing, but much larger than the one they camped at last night. There was grass and patches of wildflowers and a small pond with lily pads floating on its clear surface. There was even a small fire pit that looked as though it was frequently used with a large log placed next to it to sit on.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Blaine said happily.

Kurt slid off the horse and looked around. It looked like a picture out of a painting. "Yeah…it's lovely…," Kurt admitted softly. He glanced over at Blaine, who was tying up the horse. "How did you know this was here?"

"It's actually a popular little spot, but we don't have to worry about anyone finding us here for tonight. No one comes here after the sun goes down because there's some silly rumor about a ghost who frequents here at night," Blaine explained, rolling his eyes.

Well, now the place just felt eerie. "And you don't believe it?" Kurt asked, looking around again as though he were really expecting a ghost to turn up.

Blaine looked at Kurt, raising an eyebrow. "Do you?" his smirk was taunting," You're not afraid of ghosts are you?"

"_No_," Kurt answered quickly, glaring at Blaine.

Blaine laughed, noticing how Kurt's cheeks turned a little red. "I'm joking. Want to help me find some firewood?" he asked, smiling at Kurt expectantly.

The prince stared at him blankly, feeling as though he should be put off by Blaine's cheery disposition. Was it horrible that he wasn't though? That it actually felt almost contagious? Like he should be happy right now too because, wow, look at that charming smile?

_There's something wrong with me. It's these clothes. I'm being driven insane…_Kurt thought.

"Um…sure…" he answered, and the two set out into the woods.

* * *

><p>A while later, Blaine and Kurt were seated on the log in front of the campfire with a considerable amount of space in between them, wrapped in their own blankets. Kurt had his knees pulled into his chest, his arms wrapped around them and the blanket around his shoulders as he watched Blaine cook the raw chicken they had purchased earlier on a skewer.<p>

It wasn't right for Kurt to be feeling so comfortable. He was fooling himself by trying to forget the reality of his situation. He was being held captive, and his father was probably worried about him and so were all the people who worked in the castle that he considered his friends; those caretakers and chefs and guards are people he has grown up with and grown to care about.

Also, there was Puck and Rachel. His best friends. Kurt felt his heart ache as he imagined what their reactions must have been to his disappearance.

"They're going to find us, you know," Kurt murmured.

Blaine looked over at him, confused at first, but then he frowned when he realized what Kurt was talking about. His hazel eyes darkened as he looked back at the fire. "Not if I can help it."

"They're looking for me. I know it, and they'll find me," Kurt said, though he wasn't sure if it was Blaine he was trying to convince or himself.

Blaine had to bite his tongue to keep from saying what he wanted to, knowing it would hurt Kurt's feelings to remind him that his father denied saving him when he had the chance.

"I can't have that happen. Even though I'm sure you'd be happy to watch me be arrested and beheaded," he replied bitterly.

Kurt cringed, but didn't say anything. The two of them sat staring at the chicken browning over the fire with heavy tension in the air.

"I wouldn't be happy…" Kurt whispered.

"Hm?"

Kurt closed his eyes and spoke up. "I said…I wouldn't be happy…to watch…that. People dying doesn't make me happy, whether they deserve it or not."

Blaine stared at him. "Do you think I deserve it?" he asked, his voice coming out as a low whisper.

Kurt's eyebrows knitted as he thought about it. Blaine shook his head. "Nevermind. That was a stupid question."

Kurt answered anyway. "For this…no. You kidnapped me to try and save thousands of others. Although it's causing me and my family quite the inconvenience, I can see there was some good intention behind it. Although there was the small matter of you and your friend threatening to kill me…"

Blaine cut in. "I don't intend to kill you. Never did. Yes, it was a part of the ultimatum we gave your father, but it's something I'm going to make sure we don't have to do," he said surely.

Chewing his lip, Kurt was confused by how adamant Blaine sounded, like he wanted to protect Kurt, which didn't make sense to him. "Why not though? I'm sure you must hate me as much as that Sebastian guy and the rest of your country do. Why wouldn't you just want to kill me for revenge?"

He was surprised when Blaine laughed. Kurt immediately narrowed his eyes at him in annoyance, not seeing what was so funny, but the more he watched Blaine laugh, the more he realized it was quite a pleasant sound.

_Insane. You're going insane. Blaine's probably slipping drugs into your food. That's why you're thinking about stupid stuff like this. What does it matter if he has a nice laugh? He's a fucking assassin for God's sake!_

"I'm sorry! I don't know why I'm laughing so hard. It's just that…I've realized I don't hate you at all. Believe me, I did at first, but that was before I met you," Blaine smiled at Kurt, who suddenly felt a bit dazed. "You're kind of funny actually. In a good way. Makes it really hard not to hate you."

Kurt blushed and looked down. "That doesn't make sense…" he murmured.

"Well, you told me that you hate the war as much as I do, and I believe you. So I really don't have reason to hate you," Blaine shrugged. He removed the chicken from the fire and tore off a leg, examining the meat inside. "Looks pretty well cooked. Here. Eat as much as you want. I'll have this and whatever you don't finish," he said, holding the stick with the chicken skewered on it out to Kurt.

"Um…thanks," Kurt said and took it. He watched Blaine take a bite of the leg as though he wanted to make sure it wasn't poisonous or something before he ripped a small bite out of the flesh. It was bland, but well-cooked which was good enough for him considering how hungry he was.

"So…if you don't mind me asking, how old are you?" Kurt asked between bites.

"Twenty. Same as you."

Being a well-known public figure, Kurt wasn't surprised Blaine knew how old he was. He was used to people he's never met just knowing facts about him. Besides, it wouldn't surprise him if Blaine did research on him before he kidnapped him anyway.

"When I think of the word 'assassin', someone my age doesn't immediately come to mind. How does someone so young get into the art of murder and kidnapping?" Kurt asked, smiling slightly to show he wasn't trying to be insulting or anything.

Blaine smirked. "My father is our leader, so I've had a bit of an advantage over others since he's the one who trained me. Being taught by the most skilled assassin in the group makes rising through the ranks easier. Not _easy_, but definitely _easier._"

"So…you never had any…doubts about making this your lifestyle? I imagine it can't be very easy to convince a girl to marry you and start a family by telling her your job is…well…killing people," Kurt said, although in the back of his mind he knew with Blaine's looks he could probably still get anyone he wanted regardless.

_Except for me…of course…_ the fact that Kurt even needed to remind himself of that made him want to slap himself.

He was taken from his thoughts when he realized Blaine was staring at him, looking contemplative. Kurt immediately thought it was because he was asking rather personal questions. "That was…uhm…you don't have to answer that…" he stammered.

Blaine smiled lightly. "No, it's just…you're right that, for a lot of us, living this sort of lifestyle makes the idea of settling down is very difficult one…but for me it's even more complicated."

"…why's that?"

"Well, not only are there not very women who would be completely partial to the idea of having an assassin as a husband, but there are even less men who want that to choose from."

Kurt stared at him blankly, not understanding what he meant for the longest time until-_oooh._

"You're…gay…?" he asked, his voice coming out as a small whisper.

Blaine nodded, his eyes tentatively scouring Kurt's face, gauging his reaction.

Kurt tried to ignore the feeling of his heart swelling due to the fact that…this is the first time he's ever met another gay man in his life. He couldn't though. He was shocked.

Realizing he was staring at Blaine with wide eyes, he dropped his gaze. "Oh…me, too," he said, trying to sound casual but failing miserably.

"You look really surprised."

"Back home…there aren't many others like me…actually there _aren't _any others like me," the prince admitted softly.

"Really?" Blaine raised an eyebrow. He felt his heart go out for Kurt because he couldn't imagine going through life not having _anyone _to relate to on that front. Blaine didn't know very many gay men either, but enough that he was able to have two previous relationships.

"I've known that there were others out there like me, but I've never strayed very far from the castle ever since the war began so I really didn't give myself much chance to meet anyone. Besides, royals aren't exactly encouraged to mingle with commoners anyway, especially romantically," Kurt rolled his eyes.

It was silent for a moment before Blaine spoke again. "I'm sorry, Kurt. That sounds…lonely. I mean I don't know very many gay men either, but that's why Sebastian and I have always been good friends. We're the only ones in our clan that have that in common."

"Sebastian's gay, too?"

"Yep, so I guess now you've met two gay men," Blaine said, smiling. It was obvious he was trying to cheer Kurt up.

"Yes, because he was _such_ a pleasure to meet," Kurt said sarcastically, but still smiled back at Blaine. "So…you and Sebastian…are you…?"

Blaine shook his head. "Almost everyone in the brotherhood expects us to get married someday, being the only two gay men, but I don't see Sebastian that way. He's like a brother to me. We grew up together. Though we sort of…tried once…to date I mean, but it was just too awkward."

The strangest feeling took hold of Kurt as he listened to Blaine talk about Sebastian. He couldn't place it though until Blaine mentioned them trying to date and Kurt felt his anger flare a little and it surprised him. He was _jealous. _Not because he…wanted…Blaine or anything like that, but because he wished he had his own Sebastian. A friend he could relate to in that way.

Speaking about friends made him think of Rachel and Puck anyway, which made him yearn to be back home. Suddenly, he really didn't want to talk about this anymore. "Well…as standoffish as Sebastian may be, that's good that you have a friend like him," he said, trying not to let the jealousy drip into his tone. "Here…I'm full. You can have the rest. I'm going to get some sleep," Kurt said, handing the half-eaten chicken to Blaine.

Blaine nodded. "Alright. Good night then," he said politely.

Kurt laid his blanket out by the fire, and settled himself on his side with his back turned to Blaine. He lied. He had no intention of sleeping yet. Blaine was exhausted, Kurt could tell, and he had to fall asleep sometime tonight. When he did, Kurt as going home.

* * *

><p>Around two hours later, Blaine was sound asleep.<p>

He wouldn't get another chance.

Kurt backed away from their little makeshift camp slowly, working very hard to make sure his feet made as little noise as possible. Luckily, the grass was a soft cushion and helped mask his footsteps, so he turned around and began to walk faster, looking back to see if Blaine stirred at all.

Then he was far enough way that Kurt could barely see him through the trees, and he was taking the trail that led back to the road. His adrenaline was pumping as he walked at a faster pace, holding himself back from a full on run in case Blaine might still be able to hear him.

This was it. He was escaping. He would head back down the road and find his search party and finally go home.

Kurt emerged from the trees onto the dirt road to find himself face to face with two men.

"Well, hello there, Princey. And here we were about to come get you, but looks like you've come to us instead," one of them drawled. He had scraggly, dirty blonde hair, piercing blue eyes, and a very unhygienic appearance. The man was missing a tooth and his face was dirty. The man beside him had about the same appearance except he wasn't as stocky and little shorter. The two looked like brothers. Bandit brothers.

Body frozen, Kurt immediately put up a defensive front, clenching his fists and trying to keep his fear from showing in his eyes by glaring at the two. "You know who I am?" he asked, surprised that the man called him 'Princey'.

"Of course," the other man answered, and started walking in a slow circle around Kurt. "You're Prince Kurt of Renova. Son of King Mattius. We spotted you back at the town square, and me and my brother here knew we just had to make your acquaintance." He came to a stop behind Kurt.

"Just get to the point, what do you want from me?" Kurt said in a low voice, every muscle in his body tensed. He was frightened, so frightened. It was obvious these men were dangerous, and for some godforsaken reason, Kurt's first thought was that he hoped Blaine was awake now. He looked pretty knocked out though when Kurt left.

The other brother was still standing in his same spot in front of him, arms crossed and a dark smirk on his face. "You're right. Enough with the bullshit, yeah? You see, Princey, your daddy is responsible for our daddy's death, and that's not something we're willing to forgive."

Kurt paled. Oh no, bandits with a thirst for revenge. Not good. There was no use wondering how his father was responsible for theirs death because he was responsible for a lot of people's deaths. There was no questioning it.

The prince fight or flight response kicked in and he made a break for it, trying to run to the side, but the bandit behind him caught his arm and pulled him back. Kurt whirled around and surprised both himself and the bandit when his fist connected with the man's jaw.

"Fuck! You little-"the man pushed Kurt backwards, and right into the arms of his brother, who managed to lock Kurt's arms behind his back.

"Help!" Kurt managed to shout before a hand was placed over his mouth. He continued to yell even though it was muffled, and the man's other hand was still gripping Kurt's wrists behind his back as he started to drag the prince back into the woods. The brother followed and they stopped once they were sure the trees shielded them from anyone who might be coming by on the road's view.

"Time for some payback," the one who Kurt had punched said, smirking as he watched how Kurt continued to try and struggle out of his brother's grip.

"You know, I heard a rumor once that Princey here has a thing for cock, Seth," the man holding Kurt yanked his head back so he could look in his eyes. "Is that right, Princey?"

"You know, I think I did hear about that Roger. I bet he would love to be fucked, what do you think?" Seth said as he walked slowly towards Kurt.

Kurt's eyes went as wide as saucers and his heart was racing. _No, no, no, no, Blaine! Help! Someone help! _Kurt continued to try and shout, but Roger had his hand tightly clenched over Kurt's mouth.

"I'll bet you anything he screams like a whore, too," Seth chuckled as he reached for the button of Kurt's pants. Kurt began to struggle wildly and tried to kick Seth, but the bandit dodged before it made contact. "Quit struggling, damn it," he growled, and had pulled back his fist to punch Kurt when suddenly Roger let out a strangled choke and released Kurt.

Kurt slumped to the floor and looked back to see what happened. The bandit's throat was slit, blood pouring out. Roger clenched his throat and fell to his knees, blood spluttering from his mouth as he attempted to gasp for breath.

"Roger!" Seth looked at his brother in horror, and both he and Kurt looked up to find Blaine standing there with the bloody blade in his hand.

Blaine's hazel eyes were blazing with fury as they glared at Seth, who suddenly looked extremely frightened. He put his hands up in surrender and began backing away, his mouth opening and closing as though he wanted to speak, to beg for his life no doubt, but the words weren't coming out.

Taking slow steps past Roger's now dead body, Blaine approached Seth, who kept walking backwards until his back hit a tree. "Did someone send you to find us?" Blaine asked forcefully as he came to a stop in front of Seth and brought the blade to his throat.

"Wha-? N-n-no, no one! P-please don't-"

"Then you're of no use to me," Blaine cut him off and, without even the slightest hesitation, slit his throat as well. Seth fell to the floor, dead in an instant. Blaine crouched down and wiped the blood off of his blade into Seth's shirt. He placed it back in its sheath as he stood, and when he turned to look at Kurt, his expression had gone from furious to concerned.

Kurt was sitting on the floor, leaning back slightly on his hands, staring at him with what Blaine registered as fear, and he could see tears welling up in Kurt's eyes. "They didn't hurt you, did they?" Blaine asked with the utmost concern, taking a tentative step towards Kurt. When Kurt didn't immediately try and back away, Blaine took a few more steps.

Kurt opened his mouth to answer, but he just couldn't get the words out when he was trying so desperately to hold back his tears. He just shook his head instead, and Blaine actually fell down to his knees in front of Kurt in relief.

"I was so worried I was too late…." Blaine admitted. "I…I'm so sorry you had to see all this," he said, glancing over at Roger's body and then looking back at Kurt, who was staring at him with an expression Blaine couldn't really place. He panicked. For reasons he wasn't entirely sure of, he didn't want Kurt to think of him as a cruel killer.

No, he did know the reasons. Blaine cared about Kurt. Too much. He hadn't realized it at all until now though, when he had spotted the men terrorizing Kurt and the thought that they were hurting him sent him into a rage unlike any he'd ever felt before.

"I saw what they were going to do you, Kurt, and it…it really pissed me off," he said, his voice almost a growl. He was speaking through gritted teeth, and at first Kurt was confused, but then he realized Blaine was trying to explain himself, explain why he killed them. As though he didn't want Kurt to be afraid of him.

"I had to make them pay, and maybe I went too far, but I wouldn't have done it any other way," Blaine continued. His hazel eyes locked onto Kurt's and held his gaze as he said, "I wouldn't have been able to forgive myself if they had hurt you. If I had failed at protecting you."

Suddenly, in one fluid movement, Kurt launched himself forward and into Blaine's arms, clutching his uniform and burying his face into Blaine's chest as he let out a choked sob. Blaine was completely dumbstruck. He held his arms open stupidly as looked down at Kurt's face pressed into his torso.

"Y-you _saved_ me. I…I didn't think you would," Kurt cried, allowing the tears he had been holding back to fall. He had never felt more relieved and he couldn't believe Blaine was sitting here thinking Kurt was going to hate him when in reality his heart swelled with gratitude. "Thank you…_thank you so much_."

If Blaine hadn't already been completely dumbstruck, that sure did the trick. "Kurt…I would never let anyone hurt you…" he said softly, knowing full well he was giving a promise he wasn't sure he could keep. Right now though, he wanted nothing but for Kurt to feel safe, as messed up as that was.

Blaine glanced over at the dead bandits, and knew they were going to have to get moving again. Silently, he lifted a still sniffling Kurt into his arms. Surprisingly, the prince didn't protest at all, just pressed his face into Blaine's shoulder. This was wrong. Whatever the hell these feelings were that he was developing, they were so wrong…but for this moment, Blaine allowed himself to let it feel right as he carried Kurt back towards their camp.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: OMG this chapter took soooo much longer than expected! I just really wanted it to be as perfect as possible. Anyway, I would really, really love and appreciate reviews because I'm nervous about how you guys are going to like this. Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

><p>After the night's surprising events, if Kurt and Blaine felt the change in dynamic between them, neither mentioned it. After getting a couple more hours of sleep, the two had left the camp and were back on the road to Crylan City. They had about a day and a half of travel left before they arrived, and Kurt was nervous for what would happen once they did. The optimistic outcome would be he would get to go home, right? He really didn't want to think about what the negative outcome would be. There was one thing he was certain of though, and that was he actually wanted more time to figure out what it was that he was starting to feel for Blaine. He was worried a day and a half wasn't enough.<p>

See, there was a constantly present tension between him and Blaine, and it was killing him. Not an awkward tension or an angry tension…but like a…dare he even consider it…sexual tension? Whatever it was, it was always there, causing his heart to race every time Blaine smiled at him or his skin to tingle whenever they were within touching distance.

At first, Kurt thought it was just him. He figured he was just imagining that this…"thing" had developed between them when Blaine had saved his life. But he started catching some signs that Blaine felt the same way. Blaine was good at keeping an emotionless expression, Kurt wouldn't be surprised if "How to Poker Face" was a required lesson for assassins, but Blaine slipped up once in a while.

Kurt would smile or laugh or say something witty that Blaine would always find so funny and Kurt would catch it-a flash of change in Blaine's eyes. The hazel would soften to honey and he would tilt his head very slightly and just gaze at Kurt with such endearment. It made the young prince's breath catch every time.

A second would go by, maybe even two, and then Blaine would compose himself and turn his eyes away, continuing the conversation as though nothing happened. Kurt would suck in a breath and look down at the floor as his mind tried to make sense of what happened.

Whenever Kurt was sitting on the horse behind Blaine, he didn't try to back up as much as possible on the saddle anymore. That morning when Kurt had climbed on after Blaine, he tentatively allowed his torso to press against Blaine's back, and Blaine tensed. Kurt wished he could see his facial expression, but was also glad Blaine couldn't see his because he knew he was blushing. Blaine's shoulders eased after a moment though and they went on their way without a word about it.

It had been after that when he realized he was rather desperate to find out whether Blaine…whether Blaine what? Liked him? Loved him? Was attracted to him? He knew he was being ridiculous, but the idea that another gay man might actually have feelings for him was far too new and exciting to ignore, putting the fact that said gay man was an assassin who kidnapped him aside.

From Blaine's perspective, Kurt's advances certainly did not go unnoticed. All day long, Blaine was tortured as he used every ounce of his self-control to repress his feelings for Kurt, but damn it, the prince did not make it easy. Those eyes. That smile. That goddamned sense of humor Blaine already adored so much. Pure torture. At one point when they stopped by a small town to eat in the middle of the day, Kurt would occasionally brush his arm against Blaine's as they walked side by side looking for somewhere to eat. Every instinct he had screamed at him to grab Kurt's hand. He just wanted to hold it so bad. God, it felt like Kurt was turning him into a 12-year-old with a crush.

He did everything to keep his emotions in check, to try and not lead Kurt on. He wasn't doing enough though. He knew he wasn't because the advances only increased over the span of the day. Blaine's heart pounded in his chest just being the gorgeous man's presence. He could try and convince himself all he wanted that there was nothing between them, but it wasn't true.

He could feel himself falling in love with Kurt, and it was wrong. It was so, so wrong.

* * *

><p>By the end of the day, Kurt had enough. He needed to figure this out <em>tonight.<em>

Blaine had agreed to stay in an inn due to his complaints about not having slept in a proper bed for days. It was a small room in which the two beds took up a lot of space. The two of them couldn't walk around without accidently brushing up against each other. Or maybe they were just purposely brushing up against each other?

While Blaine was removing his belt that held all his weapons and placing it on a chair in the corner of the room, Kurt watched silently and got up from where he was sitting on the bed he had claimed (actually, he had originally wanted the one closer to the door, but Blaine refused to let him have it. "For obvious reasons," he had said). Blaine heard footsteps and looked behind him. Kurt froze, standing at the foot of Blaine's bed. He leaned back against the wall across from it, looking down at his hands which were fidgeting with the hem of his shirt nervously.

"We need to talk…about last night."

Fuck, Blaine knew this was coming. He would be naïve to think they would reach Crylan City without Kurt wanting to discuss this at some point. "What about it?" he asked simply, turning to face the prince.

Kurt chewed his lip as he thought of what to say. "After you saved me…"he started softly," I noticed something…something changed and you…you can't tell me you haven't noticed it, too, because I know you have," he said quickly, feeling embarrassed at how completely tongue-tied he was.

Blaine stared at him for a moment. He could lie. He could say he had no clue what Kurt was talking about, but then Kurt looked up at him with those eyes. Damn it. "Yes, I have."

Kurt didn't say anything, just stared at Blaine with such expectancy and Blaine had no idea what it was Kurt wanted.

Well, that was a huge lie. He does know, but doesn't want to admit it. He doesn't want to admit that Kurt wants exactly what he wants, because what he wants is _wrong._

"So…do you…" Kurt's cheeks turned pink and he was pretty sure he had never felt more awkward in his life," do you…like me?"

Blaine couldn't help himself. He smiled gloatingly. "Well, this is certainly a side of you I haven't seen. I've caused the great Kurt, Prince of Cutting Wit, to become flustered. Should I be flattered?"

"Hey. The wit's still here. Don't test me," Kurt narrowed his eyes. Blaine's responding laugh made Kurt smile.

"I would never," Blaine said, and once his laughter died down, he realized he should probably answer Kurt's question. "Yes…I like you. More than I should."

Wow, now Kurt could feel butterflies in his stomach. It was so silly, but then again he's always been a bit of a hopeless romantic, and now that he was actually experiencing a bit of romance for the first time in his life, he couldn't help but be excited.

"Prove it," Kurt said softly, immediately surprised at himself for saying something so brave.

Blaine was surprised by it, too.

_Don't listen to him. This is wrong…_he thought, but started walking towards Kurt anyway. _This is wrong…_he told himself again as he stopped in front of Kurt and took in the sight of his wide, expectant eyes and pink lips and blushing cheeks. _This is wrong…_he placed his hands on the wall on either side of Kurt's head.

"Blaine…" Kurt whispered, his voice sounding like a plea and the way he parted his lips and sucked in a small jagged breath made Blaine have to squeeze his eyes closed to cut off that image from his head because, god, did he want to taste those lips so badly.

"Blaine, _please_."

Clenching his teeth, eyes still closed, Blaine answered hoarsely," Please what, Kurt?"

"Kiss me. Please, Blaine, kiss me," he begged and Blaine's knees nearly gave out from under him. Christ, this man was going to be the death of him.

"This isn't…I shouldn't…" Blaine stammered.

"Open your eyes."

Blaine did, and regretted it instantly. Kurt's blue eyes were gazing at him full force with such innocent desire that there was no going back now. One kiss. There couldn't be…too much harm in that, could there? Just one kiss to settle whether or not this chemistry between them was real.

Blaine leaned in slowly. The prince's eyes fluttered closed as Blaine's mouth came in close, but he didn't make contact yet.

"Are you sure?" Blaine's breath ghosted over Kurt's mouth.

"Yes."

Okay then.

Blaine pressed his lips against Kurt's.

_Oh god, this is what heaven tastes like. It has to be, _Blaine thought immediately. Kurt's lips were so much softer than he ever could have imagined them to be, and everything he had been thinking before about why this was wrong vanished because this felt so _right._

He parted his lips and kissed Kurt deeper, who kissed back eagerly. One kiss he had told himself, but there was no way he was stopping now.

For a while, Blaine kept the pace slow and sweet and soft, knowing this was Kurt's first time kissing another man and he wanted it to be perfect for him. However, things got steamier rather quickly when Blaine took Kurt's bottom lip and sucked it gently, causing Kurt to whimper and bring his hands up to tangle in Blaine's curls.

The feeling of Kurt's hands tugging at his hair made him groan and kiss Kurt harder, grabbing the prince's hips and pulling his body forward to press against his. Kurt's mouth opened in a small gasp and Blaine slid his tongue in. Kurt gripped his hair so tightly in response it should have hurt, but Blaine didn't notice in the slightest due to the pleasure he experienced as Kurt's tongue met his hesitantly and he moaned softly. Kurt's hips bucked up against Blaine's, and there was no mistaking the fact that the two of them were now hard.

Kurt let out a whine when Blaine leapt back instantly, panting heavily and almost stumbling back onto the bed behind him. Kurt stared at him, trembling slightly at the sudden loss of such warm and pleasurable contact.

"I'm sorry. I went too far," Blaine muttered.

For a moment, the only sound in the room was their panting breath.

"…no, you didn't," Kurt whispered shyly.

Blaine ran a hand through his hair, dropping his gaze to the floor, feeling ashamed of himself. Now that his head wasn't clouded by the euphoria of kissing Kurt, he knew they had a problem. "This…" Blaine pointed a finger between him and Kurt," this isn't right, Kurt. I shouldn't have gotten carried away like that. I shouldn't have even…started it. I'm sor-"

"Don't apologize!" Kurt snapped, and Blaine looked up in surprise. Angry tears were welling up in Kurt's eyes. "Don't say sorry and tell me that…that you regret what you just did because that's not fair! You can't give me my first kiss and then tell me it shouldn't have happened!" he shouted, his voice breaking.

Blaine shook his head and moved forward, cupping Kurt's face in his hands. "No, I-I'm not! I'm just saying-"

"You're saying it was wrong and that you shouldn't have done it," Kurt argued, knocking Blaine's hands away from his face and wiping the tears falling down his cheeks. "How the hell do you think that makes me feel?"

Wow, Blaine was really making a mess of things. Kurt was right though, he couldn't take back kissing him now, and he really didn't want to. There was no doubting the attraction between them, and besides, it had _felt _right.

He took Kurt's hands in his and kissed them both. "I don't regret it, believe me, and I'm sorry for ruining such a special moment. However, we can't deny that…a relationship between us is forbidden," he said, wiping a tear off of Kurt's cheek with his thumb.

Kurt sniffled and nodded. He did know that, but wanted to deny it so much. Pushing away the truth wouldn't help anything though. "I don't want it to be…" he muttered.

"Neither do I."

"Then…let's pretend it's not. Just for now…just for tonight…can we pretend this is okay?" Kurt murmured as he began to lean into Blaine as though going in for a kiss, eyes gazing at his lips.

Blaine swallowed nervously. "We can't," he answered hoarsely.

"Please, Blaine."

Fuck, Blaine couldn't believe how easily Kurt was able to break through years of practiced self-control with those two words.

Kurt shyly pressed a kiss to Blaine's mouth, and he immediately deepened the kiss. Kurt could tell he was already getting addicted to this, and he wondered if kissing was always this intoxicating or if it was just Blaine. Were everyone's lips as soft and warm and full as his?

Blaine's arms wrapped around Kurt's waist slowly, as though he were making sure doing so was okay. Kurt responded by wrapping his arms around Blaine's neck, which seemed to please him because his kisses became more insistent against Kurt's mouth.

The way their mouths fit each other so perfectly, the way their tongues slid together, the way Blaine would go from kissing him hungrily to gently and then more passionately again, Kurt could not get enough. No wonder Puck wanted to make out with girls all the time. Kurt always chastised him for it, but now he understood.

Blaine pulled away a couple inches so he could look at Kurt's face, who blushed furiously at the way Blaine's hazel eyes gazed at his lips and then over his cheeks and nose up to his eyes.

"It upsets me that you've never had anyone to do this with you," Blaine murmured softly, fingers stroking the small of Kurt's back lightly.

"The kissing?"

"That…and not having anyone to properly worship you the way to deserve to be," Blaine pressed a kiss to Kurt's cheek and then his jaw.

Kurt sucked in a breath. "Wha…what do you mean?" He dropped his head back as Blaine's mouth ghosted along his jaw.

"I mean…"Blaine pressed a kiss to the pulse point on the side of Kurt's neck," that you are"-he pressed another kiss a little lower-"absolutely stunning"-a little lower-"and I'm shocked"- he sucked lightly at Kurt's Adam's apple, causing Kurt to gasp and bring his fingers into Blaine's hair-"that not one man"-more kisses-"has turned gay"-sucking and licking at various spots along Kurt's neck-"just at the sight of you."

"_Blaine_," Kurt moaned, and it was the most beautiful sound Blaine had ever heard in his life. His head automatically filled with countless images of what he could do to hear Kurt make that noise again. He desperately wanted to lay Kurt on the bed and keep worshipping him with his mouth, making sure not an inch of the gorgeous man's body was left unkissed.

But he didn't want to move too fast. So he kissed back up Kurt's neck and the two of them clung to each other as their lips met again. They kissed for what felt like hours, alternating between hot and desperate to soft and sweet. Their hands explored each other tentatively, fingers trailing up and down spines or tangling in hair or hands pressed against cheeks or spanning each other's chests. They felt the need to memorize each other. This may be the only night they would be able to.

Blaine walked backwards, pulling Kurt with him until the back of his legs hit the bed. He smiled as he fell back onto mattress with Kurt falling on top of him, finding the bewildered look on Kurt's blushing face incredibly amusing and adorable.

It was startling for Kurt how intensely intimate this felt, lying on top of Blaine like this. Their bodies were pressed against each other with no space in between, his face hovering just over Blaine's. One of his legs had fallen between Blaine's and there was no mistaking his erection pressed against Kurt's hip, and Kurt panicked slightly when he realized Blaine could probably feel his also.

Leaning up a bit to bring his lips to Kurt's again, Blaine ran his hands up Kurt's sides as he kissed him deeply. He brought one hand up to hold the back of Kurt's head as he angled the kiss and pressed his tongue into Kurt's mouth.

The amount of pleasure Kurt felt as Blaine's tongue explored his mouth caused him to unconsciously thrust his hips slightly against Blaine's and _oh my god did that feel good. _He let out a gasp and pulled back, eyes wide in a mixture of awe and confusion.

"What's wrong?" Blaine frowned, immediately assuming the reason the pulled back was because this was too much for Kurt and maybe he was beginning to feel uncomfortable.

Kurt's face turned an incredibly deep shade of red as he tried to think of what to say. "I…I need…" he stammered and realized there was no way he was going to be able to say it without dying of embarrassment, so he decided to show it.

He rolled his hips against Blaine's again, and both he and Blaine groaned at the wonderful friction. "Oh…I see…" Blaine smiled, but it faltered quickly. "But are you sure? I don't want you to do anything that might make you feel uncomfortable."

Kurt nodded vigorously because, yes, he was _absolutely _sure.

"Ok…here…move this leg over…_oh yes _just like that," Blaine groaned as Kurt moved to straddle him and now their erections were pressed against each other, and he wondered if they should take off their pants but knew Kurt might not be comfortable with that. This was enough anyway. This was more than enough.

He realized Kurt was trembling and looked really nervous. "Hey…"Blaine whispered and brought a hand to Kurt's cheek. "We can stop if you want, if you're not comfortable with this."

"No, I…I want this…I just," Kurt looked so sheepish, it was incredibly adorable, "I've never done this before so um…well I don't really know what to do and-"

Blaine attacked Kurt's mouth with a breathtaking kiss. "You're cute. You're just so cute," he murmured against Kurt's mouth as kissed him again and again. When he pulled back, the way Kurt's eyes were sparkling with happiness made his heart melt. "What you're going to do is easy. Just…rolls your hips against mine like you did before…and do what feels good," he said, wishing he could explain it better than that.

Kurt nodded and did as he was told. He moved his hips forward so he could feel the length of his erection slide against Blaine's, and even though there were the layers of clothing between them, the sensation was still wonderful. He did it again, pressing down harder and letting out a whimper.

Blaine's hands grabbed onto Kurt's thighs, marveling the feel of the muscles there shifting as Kurt rutted against him. Although Kurt was doing great, Blaine needed more. He began to shift his pelvis up to meet Kurt's thrusts and Kurt let out such a delicious moan that Blaine growled and abruptly flipped them over.

"Hey! What are you- _oh_," Kurt moaned again as Blaine ground his hips down roughly.

"Better?" Blaine smiled mischievously, bracing himself up on his elbows as he took control.

Kurt could only whimper in response because yes, this was _so_ much better. Blaine obviously had a lot more experience in this than he did, and Kurt's legs wrapped tighter around Blaine as his cock thrusted perfectly against his again and again. All his life, Kurt had dealt with people asking him "Are you _sure _you're gay? You've never even been with a man, Kurt, so how can you be _sure_?" Now there was absolutely no doubt in his mind at all about it because _this _was the most incredible thing he'd ever felt.

Blaine watched the way Kurt completely lost himself in his pleasure, head arched back, exposing the pale column of his throat, eyes closed, and mouth open and moaning. It was gorgeous. He brought his mouth to side of Kurt's throat and sucked gingerly.

Feeling heat pool in the pit of his stomach as Blaine drove him closer to orgasm, Kurt's hands clutched at Blaine's back, grasping the fabric of his tunic. "Blaine I…I'm going to…" He felt Blaine nod against his neck, and then he whined as he made his thrusts slower and deeper.

Suddenly Blaine was whispering hotly in his ear. "God, you're so perfect, Kurt. So fucking beautiful. Come for me." And Kurt did. He moaned Blaine's name rather loudly as he came , which sent Blaine into his orgasm as well, groaning Kurt's name into his neck quite a few times as he continued to thrust their cocks together through their high. Once finished, he rolled of off Kurt onto his back, panting heavily.

"No," Kurt whined and rolled over, pressing into Blaine's side. "Hold me."

Blaine let out a breathy laugh. "Well, aren't you demanding?" Kurt couldn't help but giggle and he rested his head on Blaine's right shoulder so Blaine could wrap that arm around Kurt, and Kurt wrapped his arm around Blaine's waist.

"So, are you okay?" Blaine asked, suddenly concerned that maybe Kurt hadn't really been ready for what they just did.

Those thoughts were dispelled as Kurt looked up at him with such a warm, loving smile on his face that Blaine's breath was taken away. "More than okay," Kurt murmured, and Blaine smiled and pressed a kiss to his forehead.

"Except for one thing…" he said, and Blaine raised an eyebrow questioningly. "How are we going to clean our pants? Because…it starting to feel kind of gross…down there…"

Blaine chuckled and sat up. "Come on. I'm sure there are towels in the bathroom."


End file.
